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B. H. Roberts

Studies of the Book of Mormon Paperback – August 15, 1992

by B. H. Roberts (Author)

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Available for the first time fifty years after the author’s death, Studies of the Book of Mormon presents this respected church leader’s investigation into Mormonism’s founding scripture. Reflecting his talent for combining history and theology, B. H. Roberts considered the evident parallels between the Book of Mormon and Ethan Smith’s View of the Hebrews, a book that predated the Mormon scripture by seven years. If the Book of Mormon is not historical, but rather a reflection of the misconceptions current in Joseph Smith’s day regarding Indian origins, then its theological claims are suspect as well, Roberts asserted.

In this and other research, it was Roberts’s proclivity to go wherever the evidence took him, in this case anticipating and defending against potential future problems. Yet the manuscript was so poorly received by fellow church leaders that it was left to Roberts alone to decide whether he had overlooked some important piece of the puzzle or whether the Mormon scripture’s claims were, in fact, illegitimate. Clearly for most of his colleagues, institutional priorities overshadowed epistemological integrity.

But Roberts’s pathbreaking work has been judged by the editor to be methodologically sound–still relevant today. It shows the work of a keen mind, and illustrates why Roberts was one of the most influential Mormon thinkers of his day. The manuscript is accompanied by a preface and introduction, a history of the documents’ provenances, a biographical essay, correspondence to and from Roberts relating to the manuscript, a bibliography, and an afterword–all of which put the information into perspective.

Print length

416 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Signature Books
Publication date

August 15, 1992
Dimensions

6 x 1.6 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

1560850272
ISBN-13

978-1560850274
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Brigham Henry Roberts, born in England in 1857, was president of the LDS First Quorum of the Seventy and assistant church historian. His numerous historical (A Comprehensive History of the Church; Joseph Smith, The Prophet-Teacher; Life of John Taylor; The Missouri Persecutions; The Mormon Battalion, Its History and Achievements; Outlines of Ecclesiastical History; The Rise and Fall of Nauvoo; Succession in the Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) and theological works (A New Witness for God; The Mormon Doctrine of Deity: The Roberts-Van der Donckt Discussion; The Seventy’s Course in Theology; Studies of the Book of Mormon; The Truth, The Way, The Life: An Elementary Treatise on Theology) which are still considered authoritative, earned him the epithet “defender of the faith.” He died in 1933.

Brigham D. Madsen is Professor Emeritus of History and past vice president of the University of Utah, recipient of a Distinguished Teacher of the Year Award, as well as the Distinguished Service Award from the Utah Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters. He is the author of Glory Hunter: A Biography of Patrick Edward Connor (Utah State Historical Society Best Military History Award), North to Montana! Jehus, Bullwhackers, and Mule Skinners on the Montana Trail (Westerners International Best Book Award), The Shoshoni Frontier and the Bear River Massacre (Westerners International Best Book Award), Studies of the Book of Mormon (John Whitmer Historical Association Best Book Award), and other volumes, including his own popular autobiography, Against the Grain: Memoirs of a Western Historian.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Western Historical Quarterly, Richard Sherlock
Here for the first . . . time a Mormon [leader] and first-rate historian is wrestling with the most sensitive subject possible for his church: to what extent is the Book of Mormon a nineteenth-century product and/or an actual record of some of the peoples of ancient Mesoamerica. . . . Roberts’s work points the way that an intellectually honest faith most go, and for that we must still read these now sixty-year-old studies, as others will do in another century.

Sociological Analysis, Gordon Shepherd
The Roberts manuscripts represent a compelling case study of the age-old tension between religious faith and rational thought. The Roberts era of Mormon history is instructive of the way in which successful religious movements eventually seek . . . to consolidate, systematize, and rationalize the inconsistencies of the founding beliefs.

Product details

Publisher : Signature Books; Second Edition (August 15, 1992)
Language : English
Paperback : 416 pages
ISBN-10 : 1560850272
ISBN-13 : 978-1560850274
Item Weight : 1.35 pounds
Dimensions : 6 x 1.6 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #380,055 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #555 in Mormonism
- #8,988 in Theology (Books)

Customer Reviews:
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B H Roberts provides light to the darkness

Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2020

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This well-written book is relevant to every member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The book provides an honest comparison of the source material available to Joseph Smith, a book titled "View of the Hebrews", that preceded the Book of Mormon. B H Robert's credentials include: General Authority and Church Historian. His critical analysis of View of Hebrews considers and comments on the source material that corresponds with Joseph Smith's product of divining a history of the Native American civilizations. Roberts provides candor and verifiable facts in this book. Even if BH Robert's didn't initially intend that these writings would pass beyond his fellow General Authorities and make their way to the general membership... this book contains an unfiltered analysis of source content for creating the Book of Mormon even as Joseph Smith sought divine inspiration... the difficulty of separating the parallel claims of Joseph Smith's book and Ethan Smith's book about the imaginative origin and destiny of the Native American tribes as a Lost Tribe of the House of Israel is an immensely difficult task.

5 people found this helpful

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Michael Eaton

An Important Examination of The Book of Mormon by an Intelligent and Honest Early Church Leader

Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2020

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My title says it all. B.H. Roberts, a respected scholar and General Authority in the Church at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, was requested by the higher-ups to investigate the historicity of The Book of Mormon, with the goal of giving affirmative answers for the questions which had often confronted the leaders by members and non-members. Being both honest and a thorough researcher, Roberts produced a report that raised more questions than it answered. His conclusions were very disturbing and worrisome to the leadership, and they quietly kept his investigation secret for many, many years — until descendants released the text at the end of the 1970’s. It shows that this good man could not deny the inconsistencies, plagiarized sources, and other problems found in the Book. He claimed ‘til the end of his life that he had not lost his testimony in “Mormonism”, but yet there are signs that perhaps that faith had been deeply wounded by his discoveries.

3 people found this helpful

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Lucy Axton Miller

A Required Read

Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2006

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This book should be a requirement for anyone studying the Book of Mormon. B.H. Roberts was the first Mormon apologist, President of the First Quorum of Seventies and Mormon Church Historian. B.H. Roberts was additionally recognized as the Mormon Church's most accomplished scriptorian of his day. Apostle Talmage gave Roberts five questions that had been asked by a member. B.H. Roberts researched the questions and went to the Twelve and First Presidency and said he could not give satisfactory answers to the questions. He asked for the Brethren to pray about the questions and get the answers from God. Each of the Brethren stood, bore their testimony of the Book of Mormon and the meeting was over. Roberts was then asked to come up with the best answers he could. These answers were given to the member who originally asked the questions.

This started Roberts on the mission of proving or disproving the Book of Mormon. He reviewed the book for inconsistencies in technology, zoology and anthropology. He presents a study of the technology of steel, glass, the wheel, metal coins and other advances that were questionable. He also covered the problems with horses, elephants, oxen, cattle and other problems. He covered the linguistics and anthropological information available at the time in trying to reconcile an Israelite migration to North America. In all, his conclusions are consistent with the current scientific community. He proposed, and then rejected, what Mormons know today as the Limited Geography Theory. He then undertakes a review of Joseph Smith and the literature available to Joseph Smith and concludes that there are significant parallels to "View of the Hebrews" by Ethan Smith. He did not at the time have the information that Oliver Cowdrey's family were parishioners of Ethan Smith. He concluded that with the structure of "View of the Hebrews", the 1796 version of the King James Bible and Joseph Smith's imagination, he would have no trouble writing the book.

The book is analytical in nature, reviewing all possible options. Mormon Apologists claim that this book was written so the Brethren would know the weaknesses of the Book of Mormon. If you read the book you can clearly see that this is not the case. Roberts was struggling and searching for ways to justify the inconsistencies found in the Book of Mormon. By the end of the study it is clear that he no longer has a testimony of the Book of Mormon. The book was not published for 60 years and finally released in 1985. The Mormon Church has had this information since 1930, but never released it. The problems discussed in this book are the same problems that Mormon apologists struggle with today. The answers that the apologists give are no more satisfactory today than they were at the time of B.H. Roberts.

This book is a necessary read for any budding apologist. It is also a book that can be given to a believing Mormon, because it was written by a recognized General Authority. B.H. Roberts was the editor of the "Comprehensive History of the Church" and the "Mormon Doctrine of Deity."

88 people found this helpful

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printist

Very

Reviewed in the United States on January 14, 2019

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Enlightening insights on the origins of the Book of Mormon from an apostle

2 people found this helpful

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Robert C. Kahlert

Dated but Highly Educational

Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2014

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Anyone who has had to go through the painful process of replacing their childhood beliefs with their adult stance on issues such as religion or politics will appreciate and stand in awe of the tour-de-force that B.H. Roberts submitted himself and his church to. B.H. Roberts had the bad luck to live through the transformative processes that changed the anecdotal, amateurish and antiquarian investigations into language, culture and geography of the 17th-mid 19th-century with the maturing scientific research beginning in the late 19th century. As a result, his earlier apologetics in his three volume book showing how the Book of Mormon matched the then-existing scientific consensus, became untenable, from his own point of view(!), by the mid 1920s. Instead of sticking his head in the sand, Roberts looked hard at the problems and compiled the dossier for the prosecution, so to speak. He found no easy solutions, but not for want of trying or want of intellect.

The edition itself is well done, and the introductory and biographical essays are solid.

10 people found this helpful

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B.H. Roberts needs more recognition than he gets

Reviewed in the United States on December 18, 2013

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B. H. Roberts was a famous historian for the Mormon church (Roberts served as Assistant Church Historian from 1902 until his death in 1933) he points out to the General Authorities that there are serious problems with the Book of Mormon. He writes about those who oppose the church who may believe that Joseph Smith copied large portions of the Book of Mormon from a book called a View of the Hebrews. He also warns the authorities that they need to look at his research because it will cause problems for the church in the future if they don't answer the questions he has posed. It's a wonderful book and one that every Mormon and non-Mormon should take a look at.

14 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Daniel

I was stunned.

Reviewed in Canada on August 7, 2018

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I was stunned by how thoroughly and mercilessly B.H.Roberts shows that the Book of Mormon is clearly plagiarism. I was stunned that after making these notes he continued to practice mormonism (though he did preach the BoM quite a bit less). I was stunned that there exists so much evidence against the BoM. I did not expect that.

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